Anybody Not using DDP?

[jzimm]

I did the math on the "free" dining offer and the basic plan would actually cost us over $70/day since we would have to pay rack-rate for our room.

Now I understand different hotels and different agents can get different deals, but from reading these boards it seems most everyone is using free dining. Am I the only one that free dining was a bad deal for?

 

[Monty]

I will only do the Dining Plan if it's free and there are absolutely no other deals that apply at the time. A circumstance that I haven't seen yet.

Financially, I think the paid Dining Plan is a break-even proposition that is only a good deal if you maximize your bill at TS restaurants every time and avoid buffets. And that only if all you can get is rack rate.

I was in WDW last week and had a 40% PIN for the resort. The cost saving on the Beach Club water view was enough to pay for my AP, my son's park tickets and cover the costs of all our TS dining easily.

There are people who like the DDP because it allows them to pre-pay their entire vacation before they arrive and have all the essentials paid for. While perhaps not the most fiscally sound approach, if that's what they prefer more power to them.

Disney offers free dining to attract people who would otherwise stay off-site into the resorts during slower seasons. For Disney it makes sense. For a seasoned WDW guest, there are much less expensive ways to get your vacation the way you want it.

 

[docnabox]

We would have lost money too. Our trip in October is the first in three years and I think the first time we will be there when they have that offer. I noticed it seemed like just about everyone on these boards seemed to use it and the reservationists really, really pushed me to get it each time I called.

But when I sat down and compared, I saw that booking the room with a discount really wound up saving money while the DDP would have cost me money.

Plus, I would really just rather eat what I want, when or if I want it. I am happy I was able to make my reservations easily and without having to worry about this credit and that credit and what takes two and what takes one and there they don't take it. Also, once down there, I know I would have been thinking, ok, you have these snack credits, better go use them, gotta eat, when I might not have been hungry.

 

[Nightsbane]

^ It does make a difference. I took the DDP ONLY because it was free. I thought it sounded like a major headache until I got it for free, and decided it didn't sound too bad. I went ahead and upgraded to the deluxe, because we are going to be eating a lot of table service. I eat a lot of steak, which is almost always the most expensive choice. I tallied up our meal costs for the week and it was going to easily be a thousand. With the free DDP and upgrade to deluxe we were only spending 400.

Now as I have fine tuned our meal choices we do have a couple of cheap places of there that are not taking full advantage, but we also have a couple such as Cindy's and the Luau which would cost 120 plus tax and tip for one time. It all evens out, and in the end it does feel nice to not manage food costs in the budget, which alleviates a ton of stress for me, since I micro vacation funds heavily, even though I prefer to take way more than needed.

 

[durangojim]

I think DDP isn't for people who do not fall into these categories:


People who stay at Deluxes
TiW members
People who don't like to eat at a TS restaurant every day.

In the past, when the DDP included appetizer, entre, dessert, and tip, it was probably a good deal. With the lack of appetizer and gratuity, it really isn't so great. As others have said, a room discount at a deluxe can more than make up for the price of the dining plan. Additionally, I don't want to be forced in to eating at a TS restuarant every day, and when I do eat there, I usually prefer an appetizer to a desert (I love premium Mickey bars, popcorn, and a scoop of ice cream and don't need a lot of fancy deserts). With my TiW card, I save 20% on everything including alcohol, and tip is included when I'm given my bill. I know for many people the convenience of not worrying about their meals is a big plus, but for me, who hates to waste money, it just isn't worth it and actually costs me money in the long run.

 

[Nightsbane]

It should be noted that to my knowledge the deluxe dining plan includes appetizer. I am not sure about gratuity.

I received a room discount code, but it only made a difference if we upgraded to bay view. We have garden view. In a place like Disney World, and the Polynesian resort, not only are all the rooms going to be fantastic, but who wants to spend enough time in their room to appreciate the view?

 

[Pumbas Nakasak]

Im using it this year and probably next, but thats because the way its being priced and marketed in the UK is far more attractive.

But I agree you have to look at it from how you normally spend your trip. I didnt use it last year and was probaly slightly worse off.

 

[ErickainPA]

DDDP includes appetizer and 2 snacks per person. I don't believe gratuity is included though.

We used it since it came out, just helpful not to worry about the money for eating different places. We usually plan it very well and make it worth more than we spend. I am leaving Friday for a trip and although I missed the free dining offer (it ended a week before I decided to go away) I priced it out and going by myself it wouldn't be worth it to get the plan, so I am doing it with a set budget. I am saving about $30 on my room without the plan, so that will cover my food just fine for a day.

 

[lovepooh]

For our family it works out the best. Since we do travel on budget and having it pretty much all paid for with the exception of souviers and tipping makes it for a stress free vacation. I priced it out, and it actually saved about 800.00 for free dinning. But everything works differently for different families. I do think the tipping part of the dinning plan made it a lot more attractive to the dinning plan in the past. Still think its a pretty good deal. Thats just my opinion however.:sohappy:

 

[raiden]

It really boils down to how much food your family eats. For us the discounted hotel would work better. We just dont eat that much food that is offered with the plans. Would be nice if they had a magical alcohol drinking plan!

 

[reptar77]

We don't use DDP. We are AP and DVC members so the discounts on rooms are better than the rack rates plus free dinning or dining plans.

I will say that depending on our trip length it can end up being about even though. We stay at deluxe resorts and only eat a table service.

We used to do the dinning plan way back when it wasn't very common, we used the gold plan. Menus were much much much better not to mention the specials. I remember at the coral reef we could get a steak with a lobster tail add on and it was under the plan. Wooohoooo. But then again this was when you had to pay 6.00 for EMH.

 

[marcriss]

We don't do the dining plan either. We like to split meals, order appetizers, etc. The 40% deluxe is a much better deal for us.

 

[Phonedave]

I am booked for free dining Aug 2010

Chances are I will change it to something else.

I am DVC and currently have an AP (and I TIW card)

I may or may not renew my AP

My TIW is good until after the Aug trip

I am contempleting saving my points and using them next year for a big vacation

Right now I am in a holding pattern, waiting to see what deals come out and what discounts I can get.

-dave

 

[meganw1985]

We knew we were going to do the dining plan right off the bat. We like having everything paid for and not having to think about it when we get there. And being able to order themost expensive thing off the menu and not think twice about it :lol: When I sat down to think about the differences between the free dining plan offer and the whatever% discount at the deluxe resorts and paying for the DDP, it wasn't any different. We are staying at the WL in a woods view with the free DDP for the same cost it would have been for a standard view with the % off an paying for the DDP. So I dunno. We did the free dining because it had the word free in it I guess :ROFLOL:

 

[harveyt0206]

This will be our first trip using the plan. We are staying at the Contemporary, which we weren't even considering before the offer came out. DH and I decided to give it a try this time because as others have mentioned, budgeting was a big thing for us this year and having it all paid up front really appealed to us. I like the all inclusiveness of it. What I plan on doing is keeping a tally of what we would have spent without the plan so that I can make a better informed decision before our next trip. Most likely, WDW gets suckers like me who have never used the plan to sign up for it. In the end, I probably should have realized that nothing is "free". :lol:

 

[mousefan76.8]

I have used the DDP three other times before. We usually eat TS for dinner. Usually dinner for our group of three runs at least $50 a person. When using the DDP this seems to be a steal. We get to eat at all of favorite restaurants and not worry about what we can or can't afford

 

[lovepooh]

I guess I look at it like this...

I have been to WDW 3x and will be 4x this coming decemeber in the past 5 years.

The first time we stayed off property and rented a car and paid for our meals out of pocket it cost us about 3k

The second time we went to WDW we realized staying on property had way more benifits then staying off property and we added the dinning plan. We loved the flexablity of it and when it was said it and done the whole trip was about 2600K we stayed at a value resort and we loved it and felt it was cheaper or about the same cost as paying everything out of pocket and we didnt have to worry about paying much out of pocket when we were there.

The third time we stayed at a moderate w/free dinning and the cost was about the same as the value when we had to pay for dinning. again it was nice to have everything paid for upfront.

For us we get the flexablity with everything paid up front works out the best for us. We did the pay everything when we get there once it was more stressful and you don't go on vacation for stress. Just my opinion of course:animwink:

 

[panther726]

We have tried the Dining plan once. We liked it, but felt like we were planing our day around eating because of ADR's. We also felt pressured to eat a table service everyday (we ate at California Grill so we could burn 2 credits at one restaraunt). However, the new Counter Service plan seems more managable, as we usually ate Counter Service anyways.

 

[DisLuver]

We’re going during free dining, but there is no way I’d book with the free dining offer. The thing I think most people forget is that the free dining plan doesn’t save you the cost of the dining plan, but what you would spend out of pocket on dining (maybe more than the cost, maybe less) minus the extra your room and tickets cost.

People should really evaluate the dining plans very carefully*. I don’t find the dining plan to be a very good value for our family; it doesn’t fit our dining style well. My kids don’t like Disney’s “kid” food. They eat much more pizza than the kids pizza, don’t like chicken nuggets/fingers and can only eat so many hamburgers and hotdogs. My 8 yo is still hungry after a kids meal—no clue how he remains so skinny! We also tend to do quite a bit of TS since my middle one has lots of food allergies/issues. We also like an appetizer and occasional adult beverage with dinner. Not to mention we like signature restaurants and two dining credits are never a good use of dining credits. Basic dining leaves us still paying out of pocket for much of our meals, and deluxe dining seems to be overkill. The snacks don't even fit us (my kids want a bucket, not a box of popcorn).

Even with dining being “free,” I fail to find the value. I’d still have to pay to upgrade to deluxe dining or pay for a bunch out of pocket. Tips aren’t included. I then have to pay rack rate for the room and buy my tickets from Disney instead of using a discount ticket broker—for a family of 5 that adds up. Even if I wanted to add in a dining plan, I’d save more money by paying for it and taking a room-only discount. I’m not so sure staying in a value is even going to make it worthwhile in the future. Disney is only offering QS for values in Nov-Dec and I somehow see that as a trend likely to continue.

I find the best deal to be a room-only discount (we’re saving just under 43% in three weeks) and then using our AP to purchase the TiW card again (currently don’t have one). We’re not even staying deluxe, but moderate. Of course, free dining would be better than no discount, it has just never been the only discount out there.

Then there is the hassle of tracking dining credits, out of pocket payments, tips, and planning your entire trip around ADRs. Yuck! I'd rather buy a gift card and subtract from that if pre-payment were that necessary.


*If you google “evaluating Disney’s Dining Plans” you can come up with some good sites that help you do it

 

[Nightsbane]

Well, it will be not only our first experience this fall with the DDDP, but with eating at Disney in general. In the past all we have ever had is counter service, and it got old since many of the places have the same fast food stuff.

I worry about being too controlled by our dining schedule, but it is still a large part of what we enjoy, fine restaraunts and shopping with relaxation. We are not huge ride people. There would be much more free to have next to no adrs, or only a few, but I wonder what that would take from the day for us, if it was all just about getting in ride lines.

Oh well, we shall see whether I made the right choice or not.